After Trump announced plans to withdraw from the landmark Paris climate agreement, hundreds of cities, businesses and universities have been pledging to honor the Paris goals. Even as we continue to fight Trump's disastrous decision, the response from the resistance offers hope for our climate future.

Meanwhile, state legislatures have been passing legislation to open doors for renewable energy development. Most recently, Florida expanded tax breaks for solar panels on buildings while Nevada reinstated its net-metering law. Both states still have a long way to go -- Florida needs to remove barriers in place for rooftop solar and Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval vetoed two additional bills to advance renewable energy -- but these are steps in the right direction. As we fight to block the federal government's attempts to roll back climate progress, we'll continue pushing for stronger state laws and local action for a wildlife-friendly energy future.

For the wild,

Stephanie Feldstein
Population and Sustainability Director
Center for Biological Diversity

P.S. Today's world population is: 7,513,556,000. We can still save room for wildlife -- spread the word and share this email.

Crowded Planet / Featured Photo

No gym rats here.

A black-tailed rattlesnake hangs out at a private gym in Willcox, Ariz. Learn more about living with snakes.

Population / Anti-contraception Activists at the Helm

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is tasked with protecting the health of Americans, but several high-level positions have been filled with people who have a history of making unscientific claims about reproductive health care. These vocal opponents of contraception, comprehensive sex education and abortion are now in a position to influence access to those services.

"It's dangerous and absurd to put anti-contraception activists in these critical roles," said Leigh Moyer, population organizer at the Center. "The Department of Health and Human Services should be staffed by people who will ensure that all women have access to the family planning tools they want and need. These appointments are a threat to women's reproductive rights and could reverse years of work to prevent unintended pregnancies."

Vaquitas -- the world's smallest and most endangered porpoises -- are on the brink of extinction, partly due to decades of deadly entanglement in shrimp-fishing gear in Mexico's northern Gulf of California. Without action from the Mexican government, vaquitas could be gone by 2020.

Join the boycott of Mexican shrimp and send a clear message to Mexican officials that dangerous gillnets must be permanently banned in vaquita habitat.

Voices / Dirty Politics and the Air We Breathe

Earlier this month, EPA chief Scott Pruitt announced that he was delaying safer Clean Air Act standards for ozone pollutions for at least a year. The announcement claims that more information is needed to ensure compliance -- in other words, the dirty fossil fuel industry wants more time to continue business as usual.

But, as Center Senior Attorney Maya Golden-Krasner writes, this isn't about jobs or short-term profits: "This is about my two daughters, their friends, and all the children and elderly people across the U.S. whom Pruitt is quite literally sentencing to more asthma attacks, more heart attacks, more days of simply struggling to get a breath."

In the latest edition of Shades of Green, population and sustainability media specialist Jess Herrera discovers an environmental menace hiding in her closet: synthetic fabrics. No, she doesn't have a leisure suit in the back of her wardrobe. Materials like polyester, nylon, acrylic and spandex are all synthetic. They make up everything from sports bras to fleece jackets. And synthetic clothes aren't just a fast-fashion problem. Each time these fabrics are washed, they release microfibers -- tiny plastic particles that make their way into water sources every time we run the washer.

Earth-friendly Diet / Beef Exports a Raw Deal for Climate

Weeks before announcing plans to pull the United States out of the Paris climate agreement, Trump was already making short-sighted international policy decisions to unravel environmental progress. In May the administration hailed a trade agreement to open Chinese markets to American beef for the first time since 2003 -- but the deal isn't cause for celebration for anyone concerned about the climate, wildlife or sustainable food. Not only will this trade deal increase beef production just as it's critical that we reduce it, but this international effort to make beef what's for dinner again ignores dietary trends in both countries toward eating less meat.

The Center recently launched The Revelator, an innovative online source for environmental news. Check out some of the stories featured so far, and follow The Revelator on social media to catch the latest investigative reporting, ideas and analysis.